Deck 8: Assessment of Cardiovascular Disorders

Question 1

Explain how functional strategies can support an organization's corporate strategy.

Answer 1

Functional strategies are related to organizational functions such as marketing, finance, human resources, production, as well as research and development. They support the organization's corporate-level strategy by providing direction for the short-term activities required by each functional area to meet the goals established in the corporate-level strategy. Functional strategies also provide some operational frameworks for an organization to implement its corporate and business strategies effectively.

Question 2

Identify the common signs that indicate an outsourcing strategy is not executed effectively.

Answer 2

There are many common signs which indicate that an outsourcing strategy is not implemented effectively. First, there are some outsourcing activities that should not be outsourced, especially those which belong to the core business of the organization. Next, some outsourcing activities involve wrong vendor selection as well as poor write-up of the outsourcing contract. From time to time, personnel issues such as staff redundancy are overlooked. Last but not least, there are hidden costs of outsourcing and the failure to plan the ending of the outsourcing arrangement. (Note: signs of incorrect outsourcing can lead to a discussion of the consequences such policies can have.)

Question 3

What is the relationship of policies to strategies?

Answer 3

Generally speaking, the text views policies as the link between strategy formulation and implementation. They are the broad guidelines to be used in the implementation of strategy. The text takes the position that the dividing line between formulation and implementation is the difference between the planning activities of formulation and the action-oriented activities of organizing, directing, and controlling. Because the development of policies primarily involves planning, not action, policies more properly belong within strategy formulation.

Question 4

How can an operations strategy be used to understand and exploit a particular product offering?

Question 5

How are corporate scenarios used in the development of an effective strategy?

Question 6

What are the pros and cons of technological leader versus technological follower as a functional strategy?

Question 7

What are the reasons for strategic planners to pay more attention to the importance of planning and implementing an effective pricing strategy in a competitive market?

Question 8

How does mass customization support a business unit's competitive strategy?

Question 9

Should functional strategies be categorized under strategy formulation or under strategy implementation?

Question 10

What are the advantages and disadvantages of the devil's advocate, dialectical inquiry, and consensus approaches to making strategic choices?